Child stars' lives can be notoriously turbulent. Becoming famous at an early age and then navigating the transition to adulthood can be rocky—to say the least. But child stardom can also be rife with fascinating experiences, from early friendships with other A-listers-to-be (Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato met on the set of Barney!) to learning skills like how to sing badly on command (Miranda Cosgrave in School of Rock). Here, 32 surprising facts about your favorite child stars across the decades.
Quinn Cummings
Most well-known for her work in the Oscar-nominated Goodbye Girl as well as for a role in Family, Quinn Cummings invented a device called the HipHugger (a sling-like device that she dreamed up after the birth of her first child) and sold the company in the '00s.
Frankie Muniz
Did you know that Frankie Muniz has had multiple concussions that led to memory loss—as in, he apparently doesn't remember much from his time as a kid actor? Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Muniz explained that a bunch of transient ischemic attacks, a.k.a. mini-strokes, means many of his memories about Malcolm in the Middle are basically non-existent.
Frankie Muniz
Once Frankie Muniz left acting, he pursued a bunch of passions, including being a race car driver, playing drums in two different bands, and owning Outrageous Olive Oils & Vinegars in Scottsdale, Arizona. He also was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars.
Dante Basco
Remember Rufio, the guy with the cool hair from Hook? Well, the actor who played him, Dante Basco, continued to act. He's done voice acting for a bunch of cool shows—most notably as Prince Zuko in Avatar: The Last Airbender and Jai Kell in Star Wars Rebels.
Chandler Riggs
The cute kiddo from The Walking Dead is apparently a good dancer! Chandler Riggs studied tap dance for a number of years, including with Zack Everhart, So You Think You Can Dance finalist. In addition to acting, he's also apparently DJed and released music.
Mary Gibbs
Boo was two! The adorable character from Monsters Inc. was played by a toddler Mary Gibbs—and to get her performance, the director followed her around with a microphone to get her lines while she played and walked around the studio. Also, Gibbs is now a full-grown adult now, which is wild.
Jonathan Lipnicki
Also known as the cutest kid ever, the now grown-up Jonathan Lipnicki is an exceptional martial artist and even has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In 2020, he posted on Instagram, "[J]iu-jitsu has been there for me through the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is a huge part of my life and a lot of my growth as a human being as been a result of training."
Drew Barrymore
In 1982, Drew Barrymore became the youngest person to host Saturday Night Live at the wildly young age of 7. Barrymore was fresh off her star-making role in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, and was a total pro (she was invited back to the show many times over the years).
The Addams Baby
If you remember the teeny baby from Addams Family Values with an equally tiny mustache, the little boy was actually played by twin girls Kristen and Kaitlyn Hooper. According to Buzzfeed, the production team incentivized the girls to crawl with Cheerios on a string.
Kenan Thompson
Even though Kenan Thompson has had a long, fruitful career at Saturday Night Live, the Good Burger actor was originally told he was too young (despite being in his 20s). “I kept sending tapes when I first left Nickelodeon, and was like, ‘I would like to graduate now!’” he told Vanity Fair. “And they’d say, ‘You look a little young. Check back with us.’ It was a couple years’ worth of that.”
Peter Ostrum
Did you know that Charlie from Charlie & the Chocolate Factory never worked in show biz again? That's right: Peter Ostrum made his film debut in the iconic movie but wasn't inspired to continue on in the profession. Instead, he became a veterinarian and even hid his background for a number of years.
Cole and Dylan Sprouse
Cole and Dylan Sprouse have gone on past their Nickelodeon roots to have interesting careers. But did you know the reason they left The Suite Life on Deck was because, as Dylan told Vulture, they were 18 and not given enough creative control on the show?
Miranda Cosgrove
Miranda Cosgrove was actually a very good singer—so, if you remember her character from School of Rock, who is a horrendous singer, you'll be delighted to learn that she was only pretending. She even had a "bad singing lesson" and presented a bunch of horrible options to director Richard Linklater.
Emma Watson
Emma Watson apparently really wanted to quit making Harry Potter movies after the fifth movie (The Order of the Phoenix) because she wanted to actually work on her education—a laudable goal!—before the production team rearranged the schedule to make both work.
Natalie Portman
If you're unfamiliar, Natalie Portman's debut role in Léon: The Professional was intense, to the point of smoking on-screen as a teen. It was stipulated that she not inhale or exhale from a cigarette on camera and that she quit smoking during the film. Portman later told Conan O'Brien that she got actor Jean Reno to quit smoking, too!
Neil Patrick Harris
Neil Patrick Harris recounted to Entertainment Weekly that, to make it believable that his character Doogie Howser was an exceptional doctor and could stitch up a patient quickly, he practiced on raw chicken. "They gave us suture packs, and told us to go to Ralph’s and get a chicken breast. And actually, we would use raw chicken on set. They’d cover all the edges of it with gauze and such, so it looked essentially like skin."
Jodie Foster
If you know a lot about Jodie Foster's career, you know that her first role was a Coppertone commercial at age 3. But, according to the New York Times, she wasn't even there for the part—her brother was there to audition for the role, and she randomly got noticed when she tagged along.
The Cast of 'Stranger Things'
In one of those fun details that added a lot to the performances, the Duffer brothers explained to EW that, before they started shooting Stranger Things, "without our prompting or knowledge, the kids formed a text group and began incessantly texting each other over the summer. By the time they arrived in Atlanta, they were already a close-knit group."
Finn Wolfhard
Finn Wolfhard of Stranger Things told Kelly Clarkson that his first job was a gig he got off of Craigslist—an open casting call for a local band's music video. It was a bunch of college kids, and it was a fun experience: "I didn't die!" he laughed about it.
Quvenzhané Wallis
There were literally over 3,000 hopeful child actors auditioning for Beasts of the Southern Wild but the actor who ended up getting the part, Quvenzhané Wallis, ended up being a year younger than the 6-year-old minimum age to audition. She lied about her age...and got the part. Also, Wallis is now an acclaimed author!
Macaulay Culkin
Macauley Culkin helped pave the way for pay equity in child actors, apparently becoming the first child actor to take home a $1 million paycheck for his (supporting!) role in My Girl. He was also reportedly paid $4.5 million for Home Alone 2: Lost in New York!
Macaulay Culkin
The tension between Joe Pesci and Macauley Culkin in the Home Alone films was apparently not an act: Pesci told People that "I intentionally limited my interactions with him to preserve the dynamic between his character, Kevin, and my character Harry" and he didn't "want it to come across on the screen that we were in any way friendly."
Maureen McCormick
Marcia from The Brady Bunch, Maureen McCormick, shared in her memoir that she had a huge crush on Barry Williams (Greg Brady), but he liked Florence Henderson instead. After personal struggles post-show, McCormick released a country album, When You Get a Little Lonely and appeared in shows like Gone Country and I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!
Tatyana Ali
Did you know that Tatyana Ali went to Harvard? Yup: Ashley Banks from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air got her bachelor of arts in African-American studies and government from the hallowed institution. She continued to act and had a singing career as well, post-Prince.
Shirley Temple
Even though curly-haired kiddos looked to Shirley Temple for the perfect inspiration, Temple's hair was actually straight. According to the L.A. Times, "Every hairdo had exactly 56 curls, no more, no less," and was carefully crafted with pin curls by her mother.
Shirley Temple
Even though Temple struggled to transition to adult acting after hitting it big as a child star, she had a successful second wind as an ambassador. She served as US delegate in the UN General Assembly in 1969, and in 1974 she was appointed ambassador to Ghana.
Shirley Temple
Did you know? Shirley Temple was one of the first celebrities to go public with a cancer diagnosis, even speaking to reporters from her hospital bed post-mastectomy. As reported by HuffPost, she reportedly said of her diagnosis, "The only reason I am telling you this is to convince other women to watch for any lump or unusual symptoms. There is almost certain cure for this cancer if it is caught early enough."
Mara Wilson
Mara Wilson is actually now an accomplished writer who has spoken openly about how tough it is to be a child star in her memoir, Where Am I Now?: True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame. But, believe it or not, her early life was quite "grounded": she kept going to public school as a kid and was encouraged to view acting as a hobby.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
If you grew up watching the Olsen twins as a kid (guilty!), you may be astounded to learn that they're not actually identical—even though they are twins, they are fraternal. In adulthood they look a little more different, but you basically couldn't tell them apart when they were younger.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
Like a few other child actors, the Olsens hosted Saturday Night Live at the peak of their popularity. In their case, it was on the night of their prom, and it was apparently a "huge decision," Ashley would later tell Oprah. The two joked about it in their monologue and even had a "prom" on the show.
Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato
Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato met on the set of Barney! Both became rising Disney Channel stars and bonded over their similar experiences. Slightly more depressingly, apparently their friendship ended according to reports in 2020; it's not clear why, but apparently personal struggles played a part.
Leonardo DiCaprio
Did you know that Leonardo DiCaprio was almost Lenny Williams? He explained, "They felt my name was too ethnic and I wouldn’t get as many jobs. So that thwarted me from being an actor for a number of years. I tried again two years later when I was 13 and got an agent to accept me with my name."
